Soft drinks makers in Europe yesterday agreed to stop targeting children under the age of 12 in advertising campaigns as part of a series of measures to help prevent obesity among young people.

Members of the Union of European Beverages Associations (Unesda) such as Cadbury Schweppes, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo drew up a voluntary code of conduct which also includes commitments to stop direct commercial activity in primary schools and offer more low-calorie drinks.

"Unesda and its members recognise public concerns about today's health issues, particularly the rising levels of obesity and chronic diseases related to poor diets and lack of physical activity," it said in a statement to the EU.

The European commission, which welcomed the initiative, has warned that more than 400,000 children become overweight every year and has launched new rules to ban misleading or false claims on nutritional values.

Stephen Kehoe, a PepsiCo Europe executive and chair of a Unesda taskforce, said: "This is the first time that the major beverage producers in Europe have come together to define jointly their commitments related to responsible sales and marketing practices - especially to children and schools."